Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-01-17


For tue t.npt in ~ January.
Under the p. bead tue Southern Gull
lvator give some eound advice TO the
Southern = msr as to the preparations to
be made IL this. the first month of .-.
years vof6, and also philippines to some
eXter' up1n the faults OF the Southern
system OF farming.
"Wlth the beginning OF the new year."
itsays, "many questions press themselves
on the farmers attention. The pitching
Of his crops, the kind and quantity of
manure to be used, whether home-m ade
manures, composts or commercial fer
tilizers, the modes or preparing land :;
whether it should be turned over or
broken with sco9ters; these, with many
others, come up for prompt and definite
answers"
"Ihe farmer should know" 1t contin-
tinues, "just what he is 90 ng to do, the
means at his command to do 1t with, and
then his constant study should be how to
do it in the best possible manner with the
least possible labor. From the beginning
of the year every lick that is made shoul d
have a direct bearing on something that
follows.
''The first thing for him to decide now
is the pitching of his crop, how many
acres shall he cultivate and how should
these be proportioned among the different
crops"
The Cultivator urges intension in pref
erence to extensive farming. "The ques-
ton is not how many acres can you cuI-
tivate with the stock you have, but how
many can you cultivate to most advan-
tage or with the greatest clear profit.
Gross receipts are very deceptive; net
receipts tell the true story of profit and
loss. 1t utters a warning against the
cultivation of lands that will not pay the
cost and urges the concentration of la hor
and manure on the more productive acres
AS to the kind and quality of manure
to be used this journal says that ''the
DRIFT of experience in late years has been
decidedly in far of compOsts. ''The
stable and lot manure of the farm" 1t
says, together with it's cotton seed COM
posted with acid phosphate and kainit, is
the most popular fertilizer In use. 1t is
complete manure Tin the sense of con-
tanning everything needed by plants },
and in many respt cts one OF the best pro-
portiOned manures to be had and is adapt
ed TO all crops and all soils"
AS to the time when land should be
broken the Cultivator says that as a rule
it is better to defer the breaking OF clay
soils just as late az 1t can be safely de-
Iayed. The object OF blowing is to loosen
n the soil, to undo the packing effects OF the
Il rain, and if land is broken too early 1t IS
b Liable to be packed again by the heavy
n rains before planting time. An exception
y to the general proposition Of breaking
q late is to be found in the case of loose,
II sandy soils. These often need compact
"a ing instead Of loosenIng, and it is better
81 that they be plowed some what in advance
81 of planting 50 that the rains may have an
al opportunity of cOmpacting them again.
Whether to turn the land over with q
VI turn-plow or to break it up with a scooter
~ depends altogether on the character of
81 the land. cit the soil is very shallow
says the CultivatOr, sit is better to break
" with deep-running scooter or else follow
III shallow-running turner with a subsoiler.
& Where soil is eig : to ten inches deep
and turn-plow Will not bring up raw
81 subsoil it may be run without harm.
Where one wishes to deepen a thin soil
s by turning under vegetation, it is well to
begin by running the turner shallow so
as TO bring up little Of the subsOil; the
next year run little deeper, and so on
Enntil the requisite depth is obtained. 1t
is doubtful if deep suDs0ilng pays on
most soils, though under very intens i've
culture and high manuring 1t probably
~ Ould."